So I was taking a look through my archive of homebrew content and came across something rather peculiar. A ranger subclass called the Porkstalker which was meant for adventuring chefs. It is pretty ridiculous I have got to say, but I am sure someone will take interest in it. It's not my best work, but it is mainly meant for humor so it doesn't necessarily have to be all that great. You can find it in the homebrewery link below, or if that site doesn't work for you, access the Google Doc.

Nice concept. Could be cool.
How ever, if may I advice-
If you want it to be more playable, rather than NPC, first thing it has to he more useful.

It's quite rare to get into situatio where cooking roll matter.
maybe in gritty survival adventur, but even then you have good berries.

But if to follow some huntet tribal cultures, the Pork Stalker could create meat which enhance the eater for temporal time buff.
Maybe at high levels even permament, using legendary ingrdients. (In nordic myth, eating dragon heart give you abilities like speaking to birds)

Just an offef

Requilac

2018-06-26, 07:45 PM

Nice concept. Could be cool.
How ever, if may I advice-
If you want it to be more playable, rather than NPC, first thing it has to he more useful.

It's quite rare to get into situatio where cooking roll matter.
maybe in gritty survival adventur, but even then you have good berries.

But if to follow some huntet tribal cultures, the Pork Stalker could create meat which enhance the eater for temporal time buff.
Maybe at high levels even permament, using legendary ingrdients. (In nordic myth, eating dragon heart give you abilities like speaking to birds)

Just an offef

Good point. I don't quite know why I didn't make that feature a little bit better. I took your suggestion and made it so that by consuming a day's worth of food made by the Superior Cooking feature they gained a benefit based on the type of creature they ate. You can check that change out in either of the documents.

igordragonian

2018-06-29, 09:54 AM

Ok. I have read it, and have it some thought.

Before specifcs- hunting isn't happening that frequently, so it should be rewarding, and so far it seems so. More or less.

The very detailed rules for cooking is a bit akward. It looks more DMG material at best. You won't cook during battle anyway, it will happen in downtime between encounters.
Beside it might limit creativity,.or adressing many possibilities- for example, I am sure that cooking in the plain of fire is much faster.

Also.. it self negleting- you can't cook huge and garguntan, but then stating special effects for dragon and giant meat?

If anything, give cooking proficency+advantage.

Cooking something garguntan should be challenge. With creativity you can make epic cooking scene.

Maybe there is a need for magical oil or seasoning.
And there are some monster types I think you missed...
Undead?
Fey?
Also the flame.. look a bit out of place.
Maybe something like favored enemy
(Favored meat?)

I really love the concept, hope I am helping...
You look like a pro homebrewer...
I'll be proud to help even a lil' bit

Edit:
Random jdea for an ability
"YOU Are what you eat"
In special ritual you can make the meat transform the eaters to the same being of the meat for an hour
It's sort of twist on the druid, but it can affect others.
Imagine serving an enemy a rabbit stew.. and then he turn into a rabit.
Or during dragon war campigan, turning into.. a dragon.

Just an idea

AureusFulgens

2018-06-29, 08:59 PM

I actually really enjoy this.

A few little polishing points:

I think it could open up some interesting possibilities to be able to cook a *portion* of a Huge or Gargantuan beast, perhaps at the rate offered for a Large beast.
If we're going for sheer humerous value, I think there are also some lovely things we could attach to eating a fiend. Or a fey, or an aberration. Or making a gelatinous dessert out of an ooze! I don't know how I feel about eating a celestial, though.
The level 11 feature seems a bit weak and a bit strong at the same time. On one hand, undercutting damage resistance comes a bit late in the game, given that monks and Moon druids get a similar feature at level 6. On the other, I'm not sure how auto-hitting damage feels to me, though I guess it isn't that much, especially at 11th level.
If I prided myself on being a brilliant chef, I feel like Heroes' Feast would be cheating. Maybe allowing it as a ritual-cast instead, with a longer casting time? That might just be flavor, though. (Heheh, "flavor.") On a more mechanical note, though, casting a 6th-level spell with a 5th-level spell slot isn't an ability that appears anywhere else in the game, and I'm generally skeptical of such things. I feel like maybe it should just be a separate ability, especially when its recharge time is several days.

Requilac

2018-06-29, 09:41 PM

Ok. I have read it, and have it some thought.

Before specifcs- hunting isn't happening that frequently, so it should be rewarding, and so far it seems so. More or less.

That seems like a compliment, so thank you.

The very detailed rules for cooking is a bit akward. It looks more DMG material at best. You won't cook during battle anyway, it will happen in downtime between encounters.
Beside it might limit creativity,.or adressing many possibilities- for example, I am sure that cooking in the plain of fire is much faster.

They aren't that complex rules really. Maybe a little bit for a class feature, but they are easy to understand at least. You seem to clearly understand them at least. That being said, I will shorten the second paragraph.

And I am not quite seeing how this limits creativity, could you elaborate on this point?

Also.. it self negleting- you can't cook huge and garguntan, but then stating special effects for dragon and giant meat?

There are creatures of the dragon and giant type which are large or smaller... but I get your point. The feature will be amended to accommodate for this.

[/QUOTE]
If anything, give cooking proficency+advantage. [/QUOTE]

I don't really think that cooking something should be a check in the first place... but point taken.

Cooking something garguntan should be challenge. With creativity you can make epic cooking scene.

I am going to make it so that it takes a full week of cooking with no longer than 1 hour of interruption. Which means that you are going to have to find some way to keep from exhausting yourself during these adventures, or just succeeding on all those constitution checks. Part of me likes the idea of cooking a gargantuan creature being so dangerous.

Maybe there is a need for magical oil or seasoning.

The rules are already complex enough as is, no?

And there are some monster types I think you missed...
Undead?
Fey?

Do you really want to eat a walking abomination of rotting meat or extra planar creature which is seething with magical energy? I know this isn't a very realistic class but still... eating extraplanar creatures is pushing it.

Also the flame.. look a bit out of place.
Maybe something like favored enemy
(Favored meat?)

Why do the flaming weapons look out of place? And this is already a ranger subclass, so favored enemy seems a little redundant.

I really love the concept, hope I am helping...
You look like a pro homebrewer...
I'll be proud to help even a lil' bit

Thank you very much for your praise and assistance, you have indeed helped me! This is one of my more favored projects for sure.

Edit:
Random jdea for an ability
"YOU Are what you eat"
In special ritual you can make the meat transform the eaters to the same being of the meat for an hour
It's sort of twist on the druid, but it can affect others.
Imagine serving an enemy a rabbit stew.. and then he turn into a rabit.
Or during dragon war campigan, turning into.. a dragon.

Just an idea

This seems a little too redundant with polymorph for my tastes.

I actually really enjoy this.

A few little polishing points:

I think it could open up some interesting possibilities to be able to cook a *portion* of a Huge or Gargantuan beast, perhaps at the rate offered for a Large beast.
If we're going for sheer humerous value, I think there are also some lovely things we could attach to eating a fiend. Or a fey, or an aberration. Or making a gelatinous dessert out of an ooze! I don't know how I feel about eating a celestial, though.
The level 11 feature seems a bit weak and a bit strong at the same time. On one hand, undercutting damage resistance comes a bit late in the game, given that monks and Moon druids get a similar feature at level 6. On the other, I'm not sure how auto-hitting damage feels to me, though I guess it isn't that much, especially at 11th level.
If I prided myself on being a brilliant chef, I feel like Heroes' Feast would be cheating. Maybe allowing it as a ritual-cast instead, with a longer casting time? That might just be flavor, though. (Heheh, "flavor.") On a more mechanical note, though, casting a 6th-level spell with a 5th-level spell slot isn't an ability that appears anywhere else in the game, and I'm generally skeptical of such things. I feel like maybe it should just be a separate ability, especially when its recharge time is several days.

1) For the sake of conciseness, I will just allow the porkstalker to cook huge or larger creatures.
2) I made it a rule that the extraplanar creatures shouldn't be something you should eat. I mean honestly, no matter how ridiculous it is, eating Cthulhu, an angel, a hag, the Demogorgon, or a giant animate pile of ooze Is a pretty bad idea.
3) The level 11 feature seemed fair to me, and no one has commented. I can't see it becoming a problem really.
4) I am not a big fan of the feature either, but in the thread where I designed that feature was really popular, and I am reluctant to get rid of it. I feel as if I am taking part of the class' identity away from it. That being said, I will make it have to be ritual cast. And I don't see a problem with using a fifth level spell slot cast a sixth level spell if it is only once every four days.

igordragonian

2018-07-03, 04:21 PM

That seems like a compliment, so thank you.
It is

They aren't that complex rules really. Maybe a little bit for a class feature, but they are easy to understand at least. You seem to clearly understand them at least. That being said, I will shorten the second paragraph.

And I am not quite seeing how this limits creativity, could you elaborate on this point?
Well, for example...
spell casters can help with spells to hasten it.
Just a 'cheap' example. Maybe special seasonings.

I don't really think that cooking something should be a check in the first place... but point taken.

well, you can make such scenes- for example, monsters with acidic body parts and etc.

am going to make it so that it takes a full week of cooking with no longer than 1 hour of interruption. Which means that you are going to have to find some way to keep from exhausting yourself during these adventures, or just succeeding on all those constitution checks. Part of me likes the idea of cooking a gargantuan creature being so dangerous.
that good idea

The rules are already complex enough as is, no?

hmm, there is complex Vs Depth. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVL4st0blGU explain it well.

Do you really want to eat a walking abomination of rotting meat or extra planar creature which is seething with magical energy? I know this isn't a very realistic class but still... eating extraplanar creatures is pushing it.
Cannibilsm is also a taboo. But this something left that should be left to the roleplay of the the character.
Like animation dead for example. Just an offer.
When I imagine of Porkstalker as https://cdnb.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/005/803/417/large/johndel-marabi-tribal-kid.jpg?1493878763
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2012/10/15/article-0-0CD64D0900000578-509_233x423.jpg
with other set of values, then your generic characters. just an idea.

Why do the flaming weapons look out of place? And this is already a ranger subclass, so favored enemy seems a little redundant.
Well, why would it work? It's seems like an elemental power or arcane..
I understand the need for combat ability, but this a bit wierd.

This seems a little too redundant with polymorph for my tastes.
I understand, though, you can change the time, and stuff. But yeah

Requilac

2018-07-04, 03:47 PM

Well, for example...
spell casters can help with spells to hasten it.
Just a 'cheap' example. Maybe special seasonings.

What? I don't understand what you mean by this. Are you saying that certain spells or spices should speed up the process? I think that would make the rules more complex than what they need to be for no significant reason.

Cannibilsm is also a taboo. But this something left that should be left to the roleplay of the the character.
Like animation dead for example. Just an offer.
When I imagine of Porkstalker as https://cdnb.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/005/803/417/large/johndel-marabi-tribal-kid.jpg?1493878763
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2012/10/15/article-0-0CD64D0900000578-509_233x423.jpg
with other set of values, then your generic characters. just an idea.

The difference is that eating an undead or aberration should be physically impossible, while eating a human (although taboo) is possible. Undead are basically rotting and would give the consumer a disease and fey are seething with magical energies that would be harmful to a mortal ranger. Eating certain creatures, especially extra planer ones, would probably bring great harm to a mortal consumer. I understand that this is a joke class and I don't care much for trying to be realistic, but sometimes I feel things are stretching belief way too much and even break the verisimilitude of the setting. Certain creatures are best left off as alien or weird and I think it would be odd to allow creatures to eat them.

Well, why would it work? It's seems like an elemental power or arcane..
I understand the need for combat ability, but this a bit wierd.

Rangers do wield elemental power, so why would it be weird that a ranger subclass has a feature that deals with elemental magic?